Head Start in the Next Generation
by LGCoD
Summary: Ranma enters the Tendou Dojo as a five-year-old. Some take him seriously, others treat him like the little kid he is.


A Day to Forget  
  
  
  
Rain poured down on the streets of Tokyo. An extremely young girl with a ponytail started shouting out as a panda, at least seven times as tall as her, towered over the youth. Her hair was a bright red, even on this dim day. She dodged several of his swipes, much to the amazement of the gathering crowd. Several gasps could be heard amongst the audience, which was quickly parting for the panda. "What the hell are you thinking, trying to marry me off like that?! I don't want no fiancées at all, but what will they think when they see a five-year-old?" She failed to dodge a blow and fell to the ground. Tears joined the water coursing down her face. She looked, ashamed, at the panda and started to convulse. Her teeth chattered. The panda looked at the girl, realizing she was now unable to defend herself. He hit her over the head for being such a nuisance, picked her up, and slung her over his shoulder.  
  
"Oh my God! Did you see what that evil panda just did?!" a man shouted from the crowd. His girlfriend commented on how she had thought he wasn't Christian.  
  
The panda pushed several people out of its path. The rest cleared the street, gathering on the sidewalks. Nobody wanted to cross this panda.  
  
  
  
Soun and his three daughters stared awkwardly at the panda as he stood in the hallway, gripping the girl in his paws. "Let me down!" she shouted. The panda threw her to the ground.  
  
"You wouldn't happen to have been sent by a Genma Saotome, would you?" Soun asked, his mouth curling into a frown. His face hardened with intense concentration.  
  
"That's my old man right there." The girl pointed to the panda.  
  
"Ah, Saotome! I didn't recognize you at first. You're looking a bit... pale." Genma nodded. "You never told me you had a daughter. When will Ranma arrive?" The girl jumped to her feet.  
  
"I'm Ranma," she stated blankly. Soun looked around as his eyes rolled back into his head. He collapsed on the girl.  
  
  
  
Soun woke up with his daughters and Ranma at his side. Ranma appeared to be bruised (which, of course, would be expected of a five year old girl when a grown man fell on her). Nabiki, his middle daughter, looked furious.  
  
"You were going to marry us to a little girl?! I bet she's barely four!" she shouted at her father. Ranma cringed.  
  
"Um... I'm 16," she said. The entire Tendou family looked at her strangely.  
  
"Er... she's still a guest. So, um... how about we watch TV together?" Akane asked with as much politeness as she could muster.  
  
"What do I look like, a little kid?" Ranma responded. "We could at least spar or something. You do know martial arts, right? Pops says you own a dojo." Akane simply laughed at Ranma's antics.  
  
----  
  
I had read the mushroom story in volume 33 in which Ryouga and Ranma turn into five-year-olds three times through and was suddenly vegetated. After all, who doesn't vegetate with art that cute? After a long time of thinking about a child Ranma (a step up from my usual pattern of thinking, which can change from contemplation about the taste of a beatle to how filing cabinets are made in a matter of seconds), I started to wonder what would happen if Ranma had arrived to the Tendou Dojo as a child. The result is my experiment here, which will probably consume three or four chapters at most, but if it turns out well and people like it enough, I might continue. I would also like to note that I cannot tell whether Ranma has red hair or shiny black hair through the manga because there is no evidence either way. Therefore, I have decided to respect the anime and popular opinion.  
  
Disclaimer: Ranma and all characters and situations of Ranma 1/2 belong to Takahashi. Viz owns all rights to English translations of the manga and anime series. No infringements or sales, intentional or unintentional, that inconvenience the respective owners of Ranma 1/2 are of the author's design or responsibility.  
  
(A disclaimer, for those who don't know, can be classified under the art of saving one's ass.) 


End file.
